


Love

by RoughTweedAction (Donya)



Series: Lady Smallwood my love [3]
Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: 2018 cabinet reshuffle, Fluff, Gen, Secret Crush, The author loves Lady Smallwood, and regrets nothing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-17
Updated: 2018-01-17
Packaged: 2019-02-22 12:29:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13166937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Donya/pseuds/RoughTweedAction
Summary: Lady Smallwood's new secretary is helpless to resist her charm.





	Love

**Author's Note:**

> _Lady Elizabeth Smallwood. I like her. She's English with a spine._

You wanted that job so much. The moment you heard that Vivian Norbury committed professional suicide, you knew Lady Smallwood needed a new secretary. Finally. You had been waiting for that moment, almost ready to start plotting against Norbury to get her job. Rightfully so, Norbury clearly didn't deserve the joy of spending so much time with Lady Smallwood. The position should be occupied by someone who would never want to frame her for treason.

Elizabeth Smallwood was, understandably, distrustful and very thorough while choosing a suitable replacement for Norbury. She must have felt angry that she missed the signs of her former secretary's greed and resentment. Even when you officially became her secretary, she kept a close eye on you. Which wasn't unpleasant at all. Although she quickly caught you staring at her and noticed your fingers lingered a second longer while handing her documents. You wanted to clarify that you weren't a stereotypical secretary infatuated with her boss. Elizabeth didn't seem to mind, what she thought was a crush seemed less threatening than ill-feeling of those like Norbury.

It'd be such a cliché to have a crush on your superior. You clearly didn't have those sort of feelings towards Lady Smallwood. That would have meant a serious change of lifestyle and a strange identity crisis. You never had lesbian fantasies or wondered what it'd feel like to be with an older woman. But that didn't mean you were blind, deaf and devoid of a sense of aesthetics.

It was completely natural to enjoy listening to her beautiful voice. She was deliciously foul-mouthed and even the worst swearings rolled so sweetly off her tongue. Whatever she said sounded pleasant, even if it was, 'God, I miss Vivian sometimes.' 

It was also unavoidable to admire her wonderful sense of style. She was always impeccably dressed. Her hair was always perfectly coiffed. Sometimes you thought how she looked in the morning, in a dressing gown and with messy hair.

You knew you couldn't be the only person who got distracted by her very blue eyes. She wasn't even particularly annoyed with you, having got used that. She would calmly repeat what she had just said while you were trying to listen carefully and not think of the colour of the sea and the sky.

It wasn't only a physical attraction. You've heard the rumours about her encounter with that Danish pig. Just imagining what it'd feel like to have your face licked by someone as disgusting as Magnussen made you feel nauseous. Remarkably, Lady Smallwood took it with dignity. Against the odds, she didn't feel sick, which was hugely impressive. And in the end, she won. It was her decision to let his killer go unpunished.

You also loved her softer side. Her endless patience for Mycroft Holmes. She forgave him his foolish suspicion and the needlessly long interrogation. Her loyalty to her late husband was impressive. Mostly because he was her only pressure point. All other, more intimate ones, remained a secret. A sweet secret you would be thrilled to discover. Only for personal satisfaction, you would never attempt to blackmail her. Not out of fear of the consequences, though.

You couldn't be the only person who loved Lady Smallwood. There was nothing weird about appreciating a timeless beauty. And who could blame you for a perfectly justified and thinly veiled hostility towards Mycroft Holmes? The Iceman didn't even know how lucky he was to have a friend like her. You wondered what was really going on between them and hoped it was strictly platonic. Although they did spend a lot of time together.

You were one of the those who anxiously reacted to the news of Theresa May's New Year's cabinet reshuffle. You hadn't had enough time to take full advantage of working for Home Secretary. It'd be a disaster to lose the opportunity to see Lady Smallwood on a daily basis. You prayed that if someone was going to be sacked, it'd be Boris Johnson for the Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe case. You didn't want to admit that at the beginning of the clear out Lady Smallwood appeared vulnerable. Thankfully, despite the rumours, Lady Smallwood remained in the same position. Thank heavens.

**Author's Note:**

> I did think I'd get over Lady Smallwood, but it's been almost a year and I still can't think about her without adding 'I love her so much.' I do love her so very much. Since the reader here is basically me, I went with &. But damn, I would so read a Lady S./reader fic. God, I so would.


End file.
